'Like seeing a unicorn': Moose on loose becomes a viral sensation in Minnesota

A "moose on the loose" in southern Minnesota has become a local celebrity with a group of followers tracking his movements online through photographs and video clips.

The young male moose, who is believed to have made his way to Minnesota from South Dakota, is making his journey back home and his fans want to ensure that he reaches home safely, which is why they are tracking his movements, keeping an eye on his whereabouts and documenting his journey in a Facebook group called Central MN Moose on the Loose. The group had more than 21,000 followers as of Wednesday afternoon.

Brenda Johnson, who created the group, almost five years ago in 2018, told USA TODAY that the group had actually been set up for another moose who was spotted in the area. Unfortunately, that moose was killed when he was struck by a semi while crossing a highway.

The group, which had about 1,000 members at the time, fell silent after the tragedy up until a few weeks ago in September, when it picked up again after the now-viral moose was spotted in Iowa near the Minnesota border.

"People just started posting videos and pictures," said Johnson. "And we've been following it [since] and making a map and jotting down his locations."

Johnson said that according to sightings that matched the moose's description, she believes that the young moose, who appeared to be less than 2 years old, traveled from North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa before coming back to Minnesota. The moose was last spotted Tuesday about 140 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

"He's heading back north and it's just really a rare thing to see in this area of Minnesota," said Johnson. "He might make it home and meet some other moose in time for Christmas!"

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Crossing I-94

Johnson said the group was particularly worried as the massive animal was making his way over Interstate 94.

"He was in a town called Sauk Center for almost a week, which is just south of Interstate 94," said Johnson. "And we were worried he wasn't gonna make it overnight."

The group was relieved when the moose was spotted on Sunday morning, assuring them that he made it over fine.

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"It's really fun to wake up every day and see if there's any new sightings coming through," said Johnson, adding that it is likely that spottings will decrease in the upcoming days as the moose is expected to get into a deep forest up north.

Johnson said that the moose needs to cross another highway, which is a cause of concern for the group.

However, as far as the moose's final destination is concerned, Johson said that "nobody knows exactly where it's gonna go".

Naming the moose

While the moose has been referred to by several names such as “Bullwinkle,” the name that has stuck is “Rutt," chosen by 26-year-old Holly Stang, who saw a moose for the first time in her life. The name Rutt was inspired by the moose from the movie “Brother Bear,” her mother Bernie Stang told USA TODAY.

"The moose has no clue how famous he is, and he has brought so much joy and happiness to so many people!," said Bernie, who spotted the animal in late October. "So much joy, hope and so much happiness for so many people."

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'Like seeing a unicorn'

Danielle Magnuson, who began searching for the moose last month, told the Associated Press that she spent several days a week searching for Rutt before she finally spotted him on Nov. 13 near Sauk Centre in central Minnesota.

“It’s almost like seeing a unicorn,” Magnuson told AP. “They’re just really beautiful animals, and we don’t get a chance to see them around our area.”

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Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @saman_shafiq7.